Would you drive this car on the Katy Freeway?

At just over three feet (1 metre) wide, it is 20 inches (0.5 metres) narrower than a micro-car, and three feet narrower than a medium sized conventional car. This reduced width means more efficient parking bays, and the possibility of narrower lanes for such vehicles.

The vehicle is different from previous attempts to create a small urban vehicle in that it is fully enclosed in a metal framework, is stylishly designed and is much safer. Its roof is as high as conventional cars, and it carries one passenger, who sits behind the driver.

The main problem, of course, is that there aren’t many U.S. petrol stations at which you can buy compressed natural gas today, and that’s unlikely to change without a substantial government investment.

But I like the idea of radically designing vehicles with special purposes — this car, for example, seems perfect for a daily commute, and not just because of its MPG. It’s also environmentally friendly. You could have this for driving to work, as well as an SUV in the garage for the wife to run errands around the neighborhood.

Let’s face it: gas prices aren’t going to go down. In addition to those nations with deep reserves, the real energy-crunch winners will be entrepreneurs who meet the demands of a commuting society in an era of high oil prices. This concept car seems like a good start to me.

12 Responses

Some of the supposed benefits would never be realized, though. The notion of “more efficient parking bays” presumes that parking-lot owners will stripe smaller spaces, but that’s unlikely for a niche product like this. After all, motorcycles are small vehicles, too, but there aren’t special parking spaces for them.

And sadly, the range is very, very low. 125 miles between fill-ups? Ouch!

That said, I was really interested to read about the “hydraulic active tilt system.” I assume that means the thing leans into turns. Sounds like a lot of fun to drive!

If everyone else were driving similar size vehicles, I’d have no problem with this whatsoever. But sedan vs. 18-wheelers or compact car vs. SUV’s are already about as close to suicide as I’d care to get on the Katy!

Great idea, but I don’t think it will work here. Since it only has 3 wheels, I think the only way it would be approved for use on US roads is as a motorcycle – although I would be willing to get a motorcycle license to be able to use one of these.

I hope gas prices keep going up. It’s the only way to take away America’s pacifier of big unneeded vehicles. The CLEVER would of course need to be modified for US safety standards, but it’s not a bad idea AT ALL. As I look out the window of the SW freeway about 40% are full size trucks and SUVs, which are ridden mostly by ONE PERSON. As prices go up people will realize that SUVs and trucks are good to have, but are not a necessity. The only way that we will change our preferences is when it hits our pocketbooks. So maybe the CLEVER, more rail transportation, more carpooling, more compact vehicles, etc will be the end result of high prices. I’m ok with that.

Like many other ideas that come out of Europe, such as building $80,000 cars with no cupholders, this idea is unlikely to catch on in the U.S. except perhaps for small niche markets, like people who want to ride motorcycles but don’t want to be out in the elements (wimps.) One good sideswipe from an SUV and you’re toast.

That’s a really cool link, thanks for sharing it. In all honestly, I could probably envision commuting to work in such a car that can travel 800 miles on a 5 gallon tank. Suddenly $3 gas doesn’t look so bad.